Type Specifiers (ANSI and GNU Common Lisp Document)

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#### 4.2.3 Type Specifiers

Type specifiers can be symbols, classes, or lists. Figure~4–2 lists symbols that are standardized atomic type specifiers, and Figure~4–3 lists standardized compound type specifier names. For syntax information, see the dictionary entry for the corresponding type specifier. It is possible to define new type specifiers using defclass, define-condition, defstruct, or deftype.

     arithmetic-error                 function           simple-condition
     array                            generic-function   simple-error
     atom                             hash-table         simple-string
     base-char                        integer            simple-type-error
     base-string                      keyword            simple-vector
     bignum                           list               simple-warning
     bit                              logical-pathname   single-float
     bit-vector                       long-float         standard-char
     broadcast-stream                 method             standard-class
     built-in-class                   method-combination standard-generic-function
     cell-error                       nil                standard-method
     character                        null               standard-object
     class                            number             storage-condition
     compiled-function                package            stream
     complex                          package-error      stream-error
     concatenated-stream              parse-error        string
     condition                        pathname           string-stream
     cons                             print-not-readable structure-class
     control-error                    program-error      structure-object
     division-by-zero                 random-state       style-warning
     double-float                     ratio              symbol
     echo-stream                      rational           synonym-stream
     end-of-file                      reader-error       t
     error                            readtable          two-way-stream
     extended-char                    real               type-error
     file-error                       restart            unbound-slot
     file-stream                      sequence           unbound-variable
     fixnum                           serious-condition  undefined-function
     float                            short-float        unsigned-byte
     floating-point-inexact           signed-byte        vector
     floating-point-invalid-operation simple-array       warning
     floating-point-overflow          simple-base-string
     floating-point-underflow         simple-bit-vector

                     Figure 4–2: Standardized Atomic Type Specifiers

\indent If a type specifier is a list, the car of the list is a symbol, and the rest of the list is subsidiary type information. Such a type specifier is called a compound type specifier . Except as explicitly stated otherwise, the subsidiary items can be unspecified. The unspecified subsidiary items are indicated by writing `*`. For example, to completely specify a vector, the type of the elements and the length of the vector must be present.

     (vector double-float 100)

The following leaves the length unspecified:

     (vector double-float *)

The following leaves the element type unspecified:

     (vector * 100)

Suppose that two type specifiers are the same except that the first has a `*` where the second has a more explicit specification. Then the second denotes a subtype of the type denoted by the first.

If a list has one or more unspecified items at the end, those items can be dropped. If dropping all occurrences of `*` results in a singleton list, then the parentheses can be dropped as well (the list can be replaced by the symbol in its car). For example, `(vector double-float *)` can be abbreviated to `(vector double-float)`, and `(vector * *)` can be abbreviated to `(vector)` and then to `vector`.

      and           long-float    simple-base-string
      array         member        simple-bit-vector
      base-string   mod           simple-string
      bit-vector    not           simple-vector
      complex       or            single-float
      cons          rational      string
      double-float  real          unsigned-byte
      eql           satisfies     values
      float         short-float   vector
      function      signed-byte
      integer       simple-array

      Figure 4–3: Standardized Compound Type Specifier Names

Figure 4–4 show the defined names that can be used as compound type specifier names but that cannot be used as atomic type specifiers.

      and     mod  satisfies
      eql     not  values
      member  or

      Figure 4–4: Standardized Compound-Only Type Specifier Names

New type specifiers can come into existence in two ways.

`*`

  Defining a structure by using defstruct without using the `:type` specifier or defining a class by using defclass or define-condition automatically causes the name of the structure or class to be a new type specifier symbol.

`*`

  deftype can be used to define derived type specifiers , which act as ‘abbreviations’ for other type specifiers.

A class object can be used as a type specifier. When used this way, it denotes the set of all members of that class.

Figure 4–5 shows some defined names relating to types and declarations.

      coerce            defstruct  subtypep
      declaim           deftype    the
      declare           ftype      type
      defclass          locally    type-of
      define-condition  proclaim   typep

      Figure 4–5: Defined names relating to types and declarations.

Figure 4–6 shows all defined names that are type specifier names, whether for atomic type specifiers or compound type specifiers; this list is the union of the lists in Figure~4–2 and Figure~4–3.

     and                              function           simple-array
     arithmetic-error                 generic-function   simple-base-string
     array                            hash-table         simple-bit-vector
     atom                             integer            simple-condition
     base-char                        keyword            simple-error
     base-string                      list               simple-string
     bignum                           logical-pathname   simple-type-error
     bit                              long-float         simple-vector
     bit-vector                       member             simple-warning
     broadcast-stream                 method             single-float
     built-in-class                   method-combination standard-char
     cell-error                       mod                standard-class
     character                        nil                standard-generic-function
     class                            not                standard-method
     compiled-function                null               standard-object
     complex                          number             storage-condition
     concatenated-stream              or                 stream
     condition                        package            stream-error
     cons                             package-error      string
     control-error                    parse-error        string-stream
     division-by-zero                 pathname           structure-class
     double-float                     print-not-readable structure-object
     echo-stream                      program-error      style-warning
     end-of-file                      random-state       symbol
     eql                              ratio              synonym-stream
     error                            rational           t
     extended-char                    reader-error       two-way-stream
     file-error                       readtable          type-error
     file-stream                      real               unbound-slot
     fixnum                           restart            unbound-variable
     float                            satisfies          undefined-function
     floating-point-inexact           sequence           unsigned-byte
     floating-point-invalid-operation serious-condition  values
     floating-point-overflow          short-float        vector
     floating-point-underflow         signed-byte        warning

                      Figure 4–6: Standardized Type Specifier Names

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